The Unintended Consequences of Healing Malfoy
by Jack'N'SallyGal
Summary: "Granger, what is that moisture?" "Malfoy, I need to think-" "Are those tears? That is...completely unacceptable, Granger."


**Disclaimer: None of the HP characters are mine or belong to me! **

**A/N Just made a few minor changes (word usage). I usually post before work and sometimes things slip by. Thanks to everyone for reading and I love hearing your thoughts! **

"You never could stand to see anything in pain."

Draco groaned as another round of agony tore through his body, making it hard to draw in air. His chest heaved as he took short and labored breaths that racked his entire body with unbearable pain. The gasping, frenzied noises that filled the room were so foreign; he didn't immediately recognize them as coming from him.

It took a certain frantic desperation for him to keep his eyes open. He would have welcomed the bliss of sleep but there was something about looking into Granger's eyes that kept him from welcoming unconsciousness.

"Will you be quiet? I'm trying to sort out which of these potions will work efficiently-"

"Granger, what is that moisture-"

Granger dragged a hand through her massive amounts of hair while her chin wobbled dangerously. "Malfoy, I need to think-"

"Are those tears?" Draco attempted to sit up in bed and instantly regretted the decision as he fell back with less air than before. "That is…completely unacceptable, Granger."

Hermione worked in silence, measuring and adjusting, precise movements that belied the tears he had witnessed betraying the tear ducts from which they came.

She was at her best under pressure like this. Draco could appreciate being in the care of someone who worked well in such situations when he felt that there was a very strong chance he was dying.

He didn't doubt her capabilities but he was slightly worried because Granger was brewing something that smelled like the wrong side of a Hippogriff. Whatever it was, he had no desire to sample it smelling like that.

"I don't suppose you would know any potions that won't harm my taste buds, would you?" The look she spared him was murderous. "No? Right."

Draco couldn't see her eyes since she was giving him her back. He understood the necessity to work over the boiling cauldron and that it went toward the greater good of aiding his failing health, but as far as patient care went, she was found lacking.

What was there to keep him from giving in to sleep when he couldn't see her eyes? He liked it best when they absolutely liquefied with the passion of what she was saying. He would never admit it to her but he was a goner once he caught sight of all that intensity as it bubbled over.

In fact, Draco's last conscious thought before succumbing to the gaping darkness was of Granger and the unlikely power of her eyes.

"Hermione?"

"Honestly, she hasn't slept in three days and you're waking her?"

"I thought she'd like a bit of breakfast. Bloody hell."

"I think she has more on her mind than breakfast."

Hermione awoke slowly, aware of the voices at the door but more concerned with the dull ache in her neck and shoulders. Falling asleep upright had done her no favors and she woke feeling significantly older than she really was.

After stretching out what she could of her upper body, Hermione went to the door and interrupted Ron and Ginny's arguing.

"I'd love a spot of breakfast, Ronald."

Ginny scowled at her brother's back as he retreated into Grimmauld's kitchen to make up a plate. "I told him not to wake you."

"Thank you but I am a little hungry."

Ginny nodded her understanding and peered past Hermione's shoulder and into the bedroom. "How is he holding up? I heard the ambush was rather nasty."

"He's stable. I just don't know…when he'll wake up."

"Why don't you have breakfast with us and then you can go back to keeping watch. Sound okay?"

Hermione allowed Ginny to lead her into the kitchen where she took several halfhearted bites and spent the rest of the meal pushing bits of food around her plate.

By midnight, Hermione had given up any semblance of decorum and crawled into bed next to Malfoy. She wrapped a separate blanket around her shoulders so they weren't sharing and was careful to position her head on what space remained of the pillow.

She had the urge to place her head on his chest. She wanted to feel, even briefly, the solid rhythm of his heart.

Every night after, Hermione took to wandering Grimmauld place. She made sure to check on the other occupants who needed tending. Neville was doing well with his bone re-growth; the worst of the pain seemed to be over. Luna was sitting up in bed and back to her airy, affable self. She still needed her blood replenishing potion each evening but over all she was almost completely back on her feet.

After tending the injured who occupied the bedrooms, Hermione would walk the halls with no destination in mind. Often, she ended up at the kitchen remembering all the meetings and a time when the house was once brimming with activity. It felt dead now and so still.

"You think you might sleep tonight?"

Hermione dropped onto the battered sofa in the living room next to Ron. He looked just as tired as she felt with prominent black circles beneath his eyes and a certain slump to his shoulders as his hands cradled a steaming cup of tea in front of him.

"I'm not sure I'll be able to."

Ron nodded and stared down into the contents of his cup briefly before holding it out to her. "I just made it."

"No. Thanks." Hermione clasped her hands together, focusing her gaze on that instead of the palpable misery in the room. "Have you heard from Lavender recently?"

"It's been three weeks since we've spoken. No one's heard from her."

"That doesn't mean anything. You know communication tends to break down after an attack."

"Yeah," Ron set aside his cup, untouched, and scooted over so he could place his arm loosely around Hermione's shoulders. "He'll wake up, you know. Git's too bloody stubborn not to."

Hermione welcomed the comfort, resting her head against the breadth of his shoulder and closing her eyes with a gusty sigh.

"Thank you for being nice to me."

Ron's laughter, surprised and no small amount amused, filled the room and Hermione peeked one eye open to look at him.

"That's a rubbish thing to say."

"It's true. After we broke up, I didn't expect us to be able to return to some semblance of normality or civility."

"Hermione, you're family." Ron said simply. In his eyes, it was that easy. "I'm not going to stop speaking to my closest friend because we made a go of it and it didn't work. In bloody wartime, no less."

"I know. I'm just…grateful. I'm grateful for you and Harry because it usually feels like I have nothing else."

"Apparently, you have Malfoy as well."

"I wouldn't go that far…"

On day twelve, Draco awoke with an awful taste in his mouth and steady warmth directly over his heart. He considered the possibility that he had died and the heat he was feeling on his chest was due to some hellish torment that awaited him.

Only, the heat wasn't hellish at all. It was slight and soft, barely there. When he stirred, it slipped to his lower abdomen and his eyes flew open.

He caught the hand before it could slip any lower and cause a potentially hazardous situation. Slowly, still gripping the appendage, Draco's eyes travelled the length of the attached arm, over the shoulder and finally to Granger's face.

Without disturbing the obviously sleeping Granger, Draco struggled to the side of his bed and extended his arm until he could successfully reach the glass of water there to banish the taste in his mouth.

The next priority was figuring out how to exit the bed and make it to the loo before he left Granger in an embarrassing puddle of his urine. It seemed there was only one way to go about that, as much as he would have liked to avoid it.

"Granger."

She didn't stir, forcing him to lift his hand and trail his fingers lightly over the softness of her cheek. He was distracted for several long moments after that and forgot his intentions to leave the bed.

"Rise and shine, Granger," Draco pressed his lips close to her ear, stirring her unruly curls with each word. "Time to face another day."

She stirred then, fidgeting in her sleep and blinking her eyes open slowly as they adjusted in the gentle morning light.

"How long-"

"I would love nothing more than to have this conversation but I am very close to ruining the bed." Draco drawled, radiating sarcasm.

Granger blinked once as if digesting his words before scurrying from the bed and offering her hand. Draco made no move to take it, disgusted by the prospect of relying on her to perform the task that was no becoming urgent.

"Malfoy, if you ruin the bed you'll be the one scrubbing the sheets. By hand."

"Insufferable…damned know it all," Draco ground out as he moved feebly from the bed with Granger's help.

The trip to the loo seemed to last forever with Granger gripping his hand and one arm to steady him. Finally, he was able to close the door in her face and relieve himself in private.

The privacy didn't last long enough.

"If you need assistance, I can help you back to bed."

Draco threw open the bathroom door with a perfectly executed sneer. "I'm not getting back into that blasted bed. I'm going to bathe."

The authoritative comment was ruined somewhat as Draco stumbled and gripped the door frame to keep from falling on his face.

"Fine," Without offering her assistance, Granger stalked past him and threw open the shower curtain. She turned the water on high and rounded on him expectantly. "In."

Draco remained where he was, intrigued by the way the steam from the shower spread and brought out a rosy blush in Granger's cheeks. It was then, after several minutes of silently studying her, that Draco made his decision.

"I'm not going in without you."

"Funny." Granger crossed her arms over her chest appearing annoyed.

"Who's joking?"

Hermione was nearly positive that she would swallow her tongue. After tossing out what was clearly a challenge, his hands went to the buttons of his nightshirt. He began working at them with a lazy arrogance that should have annoyed her but only made her stomach plummet with delicious sensation. It was impossible to look away when his eyes flicked to hers, hanging on and maintaining contact while working on the row of buttons.

It made her oddly breathless.

"I'm sure you can manage by yourself."

Malfoy laughed as if was all a very fine joke. "I suppose I could. That's not what I'm asking though."

He shrugged off his nightshirt. Hermione watched as it slipped from his body and landed carelessly on the floor. "You know, Granger I think it's all too possible that they bestowed you with the title of the brightest witch of our age a bit too soon. You don't seem to be keeping up that well."

Incensed, Hermione loosened the drawstring of her pajama bottoms and allowed them to fall so they pooled at her feet. "I'm keeping up perfectly fine, Malfoy."

Without so much as sparing a glance in his direction she strode into the shower so she was standing under the warm spray. In the next instant she turned and connected solidly with Malfoy's chest as he stepped under the spray and pulled her body so it was flush with his.

"You can tell me to go to hell if you like."

"Don't you think if that's what I wanted, I would have done so already?"

Emboldened, Hermione stood on her toes so she could brush her lips against the corner of his mouth. She enjoyed the fact that he went perfectly still, allowing her exploration to continue to his jaw line and cheek before finally capturing his mouth. The spray soaked their bodies, dampening the unnecessary clothing between them so it clung to their skin.

"Too much," Hermione took a forceful step back several minutes later and shucked her nightshirt, her motions jerky as she chucked it out of the shower. "Too much clothing."

"Much too much." Malfoy agreed.

They fumbled with one another's layers, tossing knickers and socks aside. Their lips clashed, coming together with an indescribable fervor that lasted well after the water turned cold.

"Hermione."

Draco was panting, leaning back against the shower tile with his hands gripping her arse to keep her in place. The fact that he used her fist name made her dizzy with the reality of the situation.

"I'm going to try something."

Hermione nodded, shivering from the cool water and the feel of his hands sliding up and over her body until they reached her jaw. "I'm going to kiss you slowly," Draco teased her lower lip, nipping it lightly and illicit a soft moan that thrilled them both, "Gently," moving his hands to her lower back to press her as close as possible, "Thoroughly."

Their lips met, parted, met again in an achingly tender kiss that sent shocks that Hermione felt all the way to her toes. They used the remainder of the warm water as they continued their explorations. It wasn't until they were on the verge of hypothermia that Hermione shut off the water and burrowed close to Draco's chest for warmth.

"Bed." Hermione lifted her head, placing a hand on Draco's cheek as his teeth chattered around his grin. "You're freezing."

"Same to you, pet."

Draco snatched two towels from the cupboard so they could make their dash from the loo to the privacy of Hermione's makeshift bedroom. They took their time drying off, each getting sidetracked and going off to explore the others body in the process.

Finally, they collapsed into bed, intertwined and naked beneath the sheets. Draco couldn't seem to get enough of Hermione's lips; their softness and the way they attached to his seemed to fit so perfectly.

It was only when his eyes began to feel heavy from the exertion in the shower and now under the covers that he cursed his injury and the exhaustion that would make it impossible to continue things on their current course.

They broke apart, both breathing as if they had been running for their lives. Draco toyed with Hermione's hair as there certainly was enough of it. Feeling sleepier still, he kissed the top of her head and grinned when she cuddled her body closer to his.

"Granger?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm bloody exhausted."

"Of course you are." She placed a kiss on his chest, very near his heart. "Your body is still healing."

"Understand, more than anything I want to finish what we've started."

Hermione seemed to understand perfectly what he was saying. She sat up, pulling the covers more tightly around them, and dropped a kiss on his brow. "You can sleep, of course. We'll need another shower when we wake up tomorrow, won't we?"

With the understanding that their exploration was not over but on temporary hiatus, Malfoy drifted into sleep with an arm full of Granger and a most contented smile.


End file.
